Hamelin not dwelling on disappointing finish

Canada's Charles Hamelin (205) leads during the second men's 1500 meter short track speed skating qualifying heat on Day 2 of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver February 13, 2010.

Photograph by: Ric Ernst
, Canwest News Service

VANCOUVER — Something seemed out of place as Charles Hamelin walked into the media mixed zone after the men’s 1,500-metre short track final.

Maybe it was because he was smiling. Maybe it was because his shoulders were not slouched. Maybe it was because he looked anything like the person who had supposedly just let down his country by not winning Canada its first medal of these Olympics.

Hamelin, who failed to qualify for the final, finished in a disappointing seventh. But he could not have seemed happier as he contemplated how he planned on spending the rest of the evening. Not sitting in his room sulking alone. Rather playing video games and hanging out with his teammates in the athletes’ village.

“I don’t have to work to forget about it,” he said of the race. “I’m good at it. I’ll be back in the village tonight and starting to think about what I have to do next and not try to focus on what I did today — even if I did good races.”

In an unpredictable sport where luck plays as much a role as ability, Hamelin’s even-keel temperament is almost a necessity.

Saturday night, he was not the best skater (Korea’s Lee Jung Su won the gold, while Americans Apolo Anton Ohno and J.R. Celski were second and third, respectively). He was not even the best Canadian (Olivier Jean finished a surprising fourth).

But these Games are just getting starting. And Hamelin, who considers the 1,500-metre race his weakest event, has three more chances to reach the top of the podium.

“It’s not the distance that I perform the best for the last couple of years,” he said. “I’m usually able to go to the final and do good races. Sometimes, I’m not going through. It happened today.”

In front of an sold-out crowd at the intimate Pacific Coliseum, which was packed with about 14,000 cowbell-rattling fans, the Quebec-born Hamelin seemed at home. He cruised into the semifinals after winning his qualifying heat. But he got lumped in a tough group with Lee and Ohno in the semifinals, where he finished third.

“For sure, I’m disappointed about not doing the final,” he said. “But you can’t blame anyone. You have to play the race. I know I was able to do it. I was able to be in the top-two.”

Jean, meanwhile, was nearly propelled to the podium after a pair of fortunate crashes. The first occurred in the semifinal, when a judge ruled that the Lachenaie, Que., native was interfered with and gave him a free pass into the final. He then moved into fourth place after two Korean skaters crashed on the final turn of the race.

“Today, I’m really happy with my first two races,” said Jean. “Feeling really happy on the ice, really fit. So the final wasn’t a problem with my legs. It was a problem of strategy. I spent a little bit too much time on the outside. I should have went to the front. It cost me some energy.”

BEGIN OPTIONAL END

The 1,500-metre race is often referred to as the sport’s iron man event because the heats, semifinals and finals are all done in the same day. Each run consists of 13-and-a-half laps around a tiny oval that looks like a miniature hockey rink. And though the slowly building race is as much about strategy as it is about speed, the skaters are still covering a combined 4,500 metres in less than three hours.

“Think about doing that in track and field,” said Jack Mortell, team leader of U.S. speedskating. “You run 1,500 metres, take a half-hour break, run another 1,500 metres, and then run the final. It just wouldn’t be done. But the sport has always been that way, so you learn to survive or you don’t do it.”

Survival, in short-track speedskating, essentially means staying on your feet. In a race that resembles roller derby — complete with the helmets and elbowing for position — this proved to be a difficult task for Saturday night’s skaters.

All but one of the six qualifying heats involved spectacular crashes that had the crowd joyously reacting as though this were a NASCAR race. Canadian skater Guillaume Bastille even managed to fall down twice. After slipping a second time on the wet ice, he was disqualified for interfering with the other skaters.

Along with the skaters, Olympic records seemed to falling at nearly as rapid a rate.

Lee Ho-Suk of Korea established a new time of 2:16.153 in the first heat of the night. But two races later, teammate Lee Jung Su shattered that mark by clocking a time that was nearly four seconds faster.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.